Firecracker Cake Food

FIRECRACKER SHRIMP AND RICE

Steps:

• Whisk together the brown sugar, orange juice, hot sauce, rice vinegar, red pepper flakes and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a medium bowl; set aside.
• Dry the shrimp well with paper towels and add to a large bowl. Sprinkle the cornstarch over the shrimp and toss to coat.
• Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Fry the shrimp in the hot oil until pink, about 1 minute per side. Add the ginger and garlic. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the sauce mixture, rice and scallions and cook until warmed through, about 3 minutes.
• Top with more red pepper flakes, a drizzle of sriracha and cilantro leaves.

RED VELVET FIREWORKS CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Brush two 9-inch-round cake pans with vegetable oil; dust with flour and tap out the excess.
• Make the cake: Whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Combine the granulated sugar, vegetable oil, buttermilk, eggs and vanilla in a large bowl; whisk until smooth. Whisk in the food coloring, then add the flour mixture and whisk until smooth.
• Spread 3/4 cup batter in each of the prepared pans (you'll have a very thin layer of batter); set the remaining batter aside. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cake comes out clean and the top springs back when pressed, 16 to 18 minutes. Transfer to a rack and let cool about 5 minutes in the pans, then invert the cakes onto the rack to cool completely.
• Meanwhile, cool the pans under cold water, then wipe clean. Brush with oil and dust with flour again. Repeat to make 2 more cake layers, using 3/4 cup batter for each, then repeat again. You will have 6 layers.
• Make the frosting: Beat the cream cheese, butter and salt in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on medium-high speed until fluffy. Beat in the vanilla, then beat in the confectioners' sugar in three additions until smooth.
• Put 1 cake layer on a serving plate and spread evenly with a scant 1 cup frosting. Repeat with the remaining 5 cake layers, then frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting in a thin layer (just enough so the nonpareils will stick). Refrigerate until the frosting is just set but still soft, about 10 minutes.
• Put the cake (on the plate) on a rimmed baking sheet. Cover the top and sides completely with the nonpareils, reusing the ones that fall onto the baking sheet.

FIRECRACKER CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven according to cake mix directions. Generously grease and flour a 12-cup bundt pan; set aside.
• Make cake batter as directed on box, using water, oil and egg whites. Pour 1 cup of the batter into a small bowl; stir in red food coloring until well mixed. Pour another cup of the batter into a separate bowl; stir in blue food color until well mixed.
• Pour red cake batter into bottom of pan. Carefully pour the white batter over red batter in pan. Carefully pour blue batter over white batter. (The blue batter does not need to cover the white batter completely). When you add the batter to the pan, do not mix with a spoon. Just pour it in so the colors don't mix but rather, just rest on top of each other in the pan.
• Bake as directed on box or until toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Cool cake 10 minutes. Meanwhile, place cooling rack over cookie sheet. Turn pan upside down onto cooling rack. Cool cake completely, about 30-45 minutes.
• When cake is cool, divide the frosting evenly into 3 microwavable bowls. Microwave 1 bowl of frosting uncovered on HIGH a few seconds until smooth enough to drizzle over cake. With spoon, drizzle all of the 1st bowl of microwaved frosting all over the cake, back and forth around the cake in a striping pattern. Repeat microwaving second bowl of frosting until smooth. Stir in a few drops of the blue food coloring until well blended. Drizzle over cake, scattering back and forth. Repeat with remaining frosting and red food coloring, making sure red, white and blue can be seen on the cake. Sprinkle with red, white and blue sprinkles, if desired. Let cake stand at room temperature until frosting is set before serving.
• Store loosely covered at room temperature.

FIREWORKS BUNDT CAKE

Steps:

• Make the cake: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter a 10- to 12-cup Bundt pan, making sure to get in all the crevices; dust with flour and tap out the excess. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl; set aside.
• Beat the butter and granulated sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then beat in the sour cream and vanilla. (The batter may look curdled.) Reduce the mixer speed to medium low and add the flour mixture in three batches, alternating with the buttermilk; beat until combined.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake until the cake is golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 55 minutes. Transfer to a rack and let cool 15 minutes in the pan; loosen the edge of the cake with a knife and invert onto the rack to cool completely.
• Make the glaze: Whisk the confectioners' sugar, lemon juice, vanilla and 1 tablespoon water in a bowl; add a splash more water if the glaze is too thick. Spoon over the cake, letting it drip down the sides. Decorate with nonpareils. Let stand until set, 5 to 10 minutes. Put rock candy sticks in the center of the cake.

FIRECRACKER RED, WHITE AND BLUE CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Generously spray 12-cup fluted tube cake pan with baking spray with flour.
• In large bowl, beat cake mix, water, oil and whole eggs with electric mixer on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. In small bowl, place 1 cup of the batter; stir in 1 teaspoon of the red food color until blended. In another small bowl, place 1 cup of the batter; stir in 1 teaspoon of the blue food color until blended.
• Pour red cake batter into bottom of pan. Carefully pour remaining white batter over red batter in pan. Carefully pour blue batter over white batter. (Blue batter does not need to cover white batter completely; it looks better if it just forms a ring in the center of the white batter.)
• Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove cake from oven. Let stand 10 minutes, remove from pan to cooling rack. Cool completely, about 1 hour.
• Place cake on cooling rack over waxed paper or cooking parchment paper. In small microwavable bowl, place 1/4 cup of the frosting. Microwave uncovered on High 10 to 15 seconds or until thin enough to drizzle over cake. With spoon, drizzle warmed frosting back and forth over cake in striping pattern. Divide remaining frosting between 2 small microwavable bowls. To 1 bowl, stir in 1/4 teaspoon red food color until well blended. Microwave uncovered on High 5 to 10 seconds or until thin enough to drizzle. Drizzle over cake. Repeat with remaining bowl of frosting and 1/4 teaspoon blue food color. Sprinkle candy sprinkles on top. Let stand about 30 minutes or until frosting is set. Store loosely covered at room temperature.

MINI FIRECRACKER CAKES

Steps:

• Prepare the cake mix as per package instructions. Separate evenly into three bowls of about 1 ½ cups batter each. Color one bowl red, and one blue. Gently stir color into batter. Pour into three loaf pans that are lightly greased and lined with a parchment sleeve. Bake for 10-15 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake tests clean. The cakes should be fully cooked through. Allow to cool completely.
• Using a 1-inch biscuit cutter, cut 8-10 circles out of each of the cakes. Gently brush the outside of each of the cut-outs with simple syrup and then coat in sanding sugar. Let the cut-outs dry for 10 minutes before assembling.
• Dab a ¼-½ teaspoon of frosting on each of the red cakes, and then top with a white cake. Dab with another ¼-½ teaspoon of frosting and then top with the blue cakes. Using a straw, cut a hole through the center of the cakes, discard. Fill the cakes with popping candy and top with a 1-inch length of black licorice. Serve within an hour.
• TIP: Letting the sanding sugar dry is necessary to prevent the colors from bleeding.